


Golden Home

by ForCrimsonAir



Category: Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood & Manga
Genre: M/M, Post-Promised Day, just them realising they still love each other after all those years
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-27
Updated: 2018-10-27
Packaged: 2019-08-08 10:09:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,731
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16427360
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ForCrimsonAir/pseuds/ForCrimsonAir
Summary: And he knew he wouldn’t be able to forget about him as the golden light of the sunset covered the sand further than his eyes could see.





	Golden Home

**Author's Note:**

> really short edling oneshot to practice writing them!! i love these two so much...

**Golden Home**

  
Everything in him was tainted in a golden light. Or perhaps it would be more accurate to say he was made of gold himself, Ling corrected. The way his strands fell from his loosely braided hair, his fingers lightly placing them behind his ear so they wouldn’t block his view, always made Ling stop and stare for a moment. Golden hair flowing, its particular shine matching the one in his eyes. Eyes of an incredible strength, eyes that would never find a match in this world. It wouldn’t have been an exaggeration to say he looked like some kind of deity when the sunset bathed him in a light that only emphasised his beauty. Ling found it hard to breathe sometimes, everything around him disappearing to just focus on him. On Edward Elric.

He hadn’t known love before. He hadn’t experienced before how his heart skipped a beat every time those golden eyes met his, or every time he could feel the warmth of his body when they were close enough, just one bit of control away from pulling him closer. He hadn’t felt how everything inside of him twisted and curled whenever danger came upon him, when a wound was deeper than he made it look, when everything happened too fast in a fight and it seemed like he wouldn’t make it on time to protect him, the world around him motionless.  
He had known love for the first time, embraced it, and then was forced to let it go. His mind kept repeating him that this was what he had to do, as he slowly made his way through the desert back to Xing, but his body remembered too well the touch of their fists as they had bumped them together for the last time, Edward flashing a smile at Ling as a part of their goodbye. And he knew he wouldn’t be able to forget about him as the golden light of the sunset covered the sand further than his eyes could see.

Xing didn’t feel like home now. The palace seemed like a disguised prison, his purpose only to entertain the thought that he was there to fulfil his duty as the next emperor. Sometimes his shoulders didn’t feel broad enough to carry that heavy weight, but he pushed it through, knowing this was what he was meant to do. The day he had to take over the place to rule his country came sooner than expected, the previous emperor far too ill for recovery. And he did his job as he was required to, as he was expected to.  
Things quickly got busy; day after day attending conferences, meetings to sign contracts, reunions to discuss the next decisions he should pick and how much it would take to put plans into action. The moments he could spend on his own were short. And still, no matter how busy, throughout all those years he would never miss a single sunset. He would always wait to see how its light bathed everything in that golden tone that reminded him of his favourite colour, close to it but not quite as beautiful. There was something inimitable in the shade of gold Edward's hair and eyes had.

Ling had thought about making a call, or writing a letter. He had been close to doing it many times, but he never had the strength to actually do it. Was it because he hadn’t received any news himself? Was it out of fear of never receiving an answer? Or perhaps the worry that doing it would bring all of the memories back and make him unable to continue his duty there, urging him to leave everything and go back to Amestris just to see Edward one more time? He couldn’t bring himself to do it and risk all of the efforts he had put into becoming an emperor. Because he knew he was weak for Edward and would do anything to stay by his side if the alchemist wanted it that way.

The dreams, though, made it hard to deal with. He would dream that he walked through the palace gates just to see that colour once again, a hand waving at him and a familiar voice apologising for taking so long to visit. Except he didn’t expect that dream to become a reality one day, his heart jumping on his chest when Edward Elric appeared in his garden just as the sun was going down in the horizon. He felt his throat dry, his muscles tense up and his fists clench unconsciously, as he begged in his mind for his heart to stop beating that fast. The smile that welcomed him was brighter than he remembered, as well as the man approaching him was taller. But there was one thing that hadn’t changed; that particular shine in his eyes.

“Edward.” The name had rolled in his tongue countless times before he was able to pronounce it. This wasn't a dream.

“Hey.”

A voice he hadn’t heard in many years, greeting him so casually. A man he hadn’t seen in many years. He let himself take a step forward, walk closer to the alchemist until he was able to place his arms around him and hold him close, all of the feelings he had unsuccessfully tried to cover coming back to him with an intensity he didn’t know he had. Edward’s response was placing an arm around Ling’s back, closing around it tightly.

 “I'm here.” His expression was soft and calm as he spoke in a low voice, words close to Ling's ear, the most comforting words he had ever heard.

The hug lasted a few more seconds, before they pulled out to look at each other. Edward had grown older, looked more mature, and Ling was filled with nostalgia as he saw how the boy he knew had changed during all those years he missed. And he wished he could turn back the time to grow along with him and see those changes happen, by his side, instead of being confined in a palace, so far away from the one he loved.

They walked through the garden as Edward explained why he had taken so long to travel all the way to Xing. There was his brother he had to help, since he needed to recover and get the strength back to his body. And then… it didn’t go unnoticed how Edward glanced away, a conflicted look in his eyes, as he spoke:

 “It all just… seemed very distant. The times when we fought together back in Amestris.”

He wouldn’t admit how, deep inside, he feared coming here after so long. He feared coming and seeing how the xingese boy would have forgotten about him and their promise to meet again. Ling didn’t take his eyes off Edward for a single moment. Yes, it had been years since they had last seen each other, but Ling had missed him every passing day, longing to see him and walk side by side as they were right now. And his heart ached to know if it had been the same for Edward, if the reason he had walked through the desert was the same— to see him. Silence fell between the two of them for a few minutes, as Edward tried to put his thoughts back in place.  
  
“…I really wanted to come visit.” He finally said.

They almost didn’t notice how they had stopped walking, Edward's eyes set on the wide garden, which was completely bathed in the sun's golden light. The urge to hold him between his arms was fighting against reason inside Ling's mind. He stood still.

 “I missed you.” His voice was full of affection, affection that had been buried deep inside of him during all these years, and that was finally coming back to the surface.

Edward turned around to look back at him, and the intensity of those golden eyes made Ling’s heart skip a beat, suddenly making all of the voices inside of him telling not to ruin the moment to vanish inside those eyes. He took a step forward, standing only a couple of inches away from Edward. The possibility that the man in front of him felt the same way about him made it impossible to keep his composure. The alchemist held his breath for a moment, not moving. He was sure Ling could hear his heartbeats, loud and fast.

“I missed you too.” Edward's words came out as a whisper as he stared at Ling’s face, stopping at every beautiful trait he had missed so much.

And then all of those years behind them seemed to disappear as they pulled closer to lock their lips together, hands searching for each other to intertwine their fingers, the intensity of a long burning love showing through their close bodies and intense kiss. Golden strands of hair fell between Ling’s fingers as he moved his hand to cup Ed's right cheek, his thumb gently caressing it. The world seemed to stop around them. It was like they were teenagers again, their love not having faded one bit after all this time.

As he pulled away from the kiss, staying close to Ling, Edward spoke, his fingers curling around the neck of the other man's shirt, and eyes looking down in embarrassment:

“Damn, I’ve…”

He paused for a moment, words getting lost under the amount of emotions he was feeling. Ling took Ed's flesh hand and brought it closer to his mouth, placing a few kisses before finishing the alchemist's sentence:

“I’ve loved you all this time, Ed. I haven’t stopped loving you for a single moment.”

Hearing him finally speak the words they both had wanted to say during all these years made Edward's cheeks turn bright red. He quickly looked away, Ling's gaze too intense for him to hold.

“You cheesy…” He mumbled. He then took a deep breath before adding, in a low voice: “I love you too, idiot.”

Ling smiled softly, his hand running through Edward's hair gently and pulling him closer so their foreheads touched. He felt light and happy, and all of those years of waiting suddenly didn’t feel so heavy. Everything was good with Ed at his side, between his arms. Finally with him. And Ling felt like he had found home again in that bright golden sun.


End file.
